Can we learn from the many books of Sayyid Qutb despite the fact that some scholars have warned against them?

Praise be to Allah.

Ustaadh
Sayyid Qutb is not a scholar and he is not known for any contribution in
hadeeth, fiqh or tafseer. Rather he was a literary man who loved Islam,
defended it and promoted it, and he died for its sake – as it appears to
us – and we ask Allah to cause him to be among the martyrs.

He wrote
various books, in which he got somethings right and made some mistakes. With
regard to the scholars who fell into errors with regard to ‘aqeedah
(belief), hadeeth or fiqh, we do not think that any of the scholars have
said that it is haraam to learn from them altogether or to refrain from
quoting them altogether. This is despite the fact that some of them promoted
their beliefs and their fiqhi madhhabs. This is a an example of the
fair-mindedness of Ahl as-Sunnah towards those who differ from them.

Ustaadh Sayyid
Qutb is not excluded from this fair-mindedness of Ahl as-Sunnah. Hence we
see the leaders of Ahl as-Sunnah in our own time quoting from those parts of
his books that are in accordance with the beliefs and methodology of Ahl
as-Sunnah. For example:

1.

Shaykh
Muhammad Naasir ad-Deen al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on him) quoted
nearly three pages from him in the introduction to his book Mukhtasar
al-‘Aluw, starting with the words: “The great ustaadh Sayyid Qutb (may
Allah have mercy on him)…” Merely quoting from him is not regarded as
praising him; rather the praise comes in the words with which Shaykh
al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on him) spoke of him: “ustaadh”, “great”,
“may Allah have mercy on him”.

Our scholars
learned fair-mindedness from the teachings of Islam and they taught that to
others, preaching the importance of this attitude. It is only fair to say
that we should not shun the writings of Sayyid Qutb altogether; however it
is also a religious duty to highlight the mistakes that he made so that
others who read his words will not be confused by those mistakes. But this
is not limited only to Sayyid Qutb; rather it also applies to anyone who
follows the path of Ahl as-Sunnah. Our scholars warned against following
anyone in matters that he got wrong. The scholars of the Standing Committee
have issued many fatwas warning against the mistakes of some who belong to
Ahl as-Sunnah, stating that they made mistakes in the way they understood
some Islamic beliefs.

But what is
very strange is what we see on the part of some of those who belong to Ahl
as-Sunnah, who widely quote the criticisms made by some leading scholars of
the writings of Sayyid Qutb, whilst ignoring what those scholars and imams
said about the mistakes of their own shaykhs! So they accept what the
scholars say about some people but not others. Whoever wants to see an
example of following whims and desires, this is a perfect example.

There follow
some comments by the scholars about the writings of Sayyid Qutb; they all
have one thing in common, which is that we may accept what is sound and
correct and we should reject what is unsound and incorrect; this is not only
applicable to the books of Sayyid Qutb.

The man wrote
a book called al-‘Adaalah al-Ijtimaa‘iyyah (Social Justice) which is
worthless, but his book Ma‘aalim ‘ala at-Tareeq (Milestones) contains
some very valuable ideas.

Tape no. 784,
from Silsilat al-Huda wa’n-Noor.

On the same
tape, Shaykh al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

I believe that
the man is not a scholar, but he spoke words of truth – especially when he
was in prison – that sound as if they were inspired. End quote.

He also said:

The man is not
a scholar but he wrote some words that shine with guidance and reflect
knowledge, such as the phrase “manhaj hayaat (a way of life)”. I
believe this concept was adopted by many of our Salafi brothers, that “Laa
ilaaha ill-Allah is a way of life”. This is what I have to say about him.
End quote.

Sayyid Qutb is
a man who produced some ideas that spread widely in the Muslim world, but
people differed concerning him; some glorified him and some criticised him
very harshly. We would like our shaykh to explain this matter to us and
clarify it. What should the Muslim’s attitude be towards this man, because
Sayyid Qutb has had an impact on the Muslim world and he has left a legacy
of books and writings, and we would like you to give us some clarification.

He replied:

I do not think
that there should be any argument or dispute among the Muslim youth
concerning any specific man, whether it is Sayyid Qutb or someone other than
Sayyid Qutb. Rather the dispute should be about the Islamic ruling. For
example, we should examine a statement made by Sayyid Qutb or by someone
else, and say: is this opinion correct or incorrect? We should examine it
and if it is correct we should accept it, and if it is incorrect we should
reject it. But for the youth to argue and dispute about accepting or
rejecting a specific person, this is wrong and it is a grave mistake.

Sayyid Qutb is
not infallible; scholars who are superior to him are not infallible, and
neither are scholars who are inferior to him. The opinions of any person may
be accepted or rejected, except that of the Messenger of Allah (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him and upon his family): his words must be
accepted in all cases.

Hence I tell
the youth that their arguments and disagreements should not be focused on a
specific person, no matter who he is, because if their disputes are like
that, they may end up rejecting something that is sound and correct that was
said by this person, or they may end up supporting something that is unsound
and incorrect that was said by this person. This is a very serious danger,
because if a man blindly supports one person and blindly goes against
another, he may attribute to the one whom he opposes words that he never
said, or he may misinterpret what he said, and so on, or he may deny what he
said or try to find a way to interpret his unsound statements in a way that
makes them sound good.

So I say: we
should not speak about people and we should not blindly follow people.
Sayyid Qutb has passed on and Allah will judge him, and this is true of
other scholars.

As for what is
sound and correct, it must be accepted whether it comes from Sayyid Qutb or
from anyone else. And what is unsound and incorrect must be rejected,
whether it comes from Sayyid Qutb or anyone else. We must beware of any
unsound and incorrect ideas that are written or heard, no matter who they
come from.

This is my
advice to my brothers. The discussion and dispute, and the matter of
accepting or rejecting, should not revolve around any specific person.

With regard to
Sayyid Qutb, my opinion concerning his legacy is that it is like the legacy
of anyone else; it contains both sound and unsound elements, because no one
is infallible. But his legacy is not like that of, for example, Shaykh
Muhammad Naasir ad-Deen al-Albaani; the difference between them is like that
between heaven and earth. The legacy of the former consists of general,
educated, literary works; he did not have the deeper knowledge that Shaykh
al-Albaani had.

Hence I think
that what is sound should be accepted from anyone and what is unsound should
be rejected from anyone. We should not – and indeed it is not permissible
for us – to focus disputes and arguments on individuals, and to be divided
or united on the basis of individuals.